Last year the city of Seattle suffered a terrible snowstorm, and the local state and city transportation departments began two twitter feeds (one is http://twitter.com/sdotsnow). It didn't take off, but I expect it will this coming winter, with Twitter's growing numbers. I found it a great insight into the work the state and city departments do in times of bad weather.
I've since moved to Portland, where I follow the mayor (http://twitter.com/MayorSamAdams). It's a fascinating glimpse into the daily life of a public figure, a better understanding of what he does on behalf of the city.
As you mention above, these both represent a great opportunity for public figures to put on a human face, and get a little better interaction. I'm interested to see what else can be done in this vein.
Thanks for the article!

Last week I wrote about how twitter is like taking a nap, going to the water cooler or having a smoke and yesterday I posted on 25 creative Twitter uses. Here are some very different uses. Many cities are starting to use social media. In my town, Boston, police are using Twitter and Facebook to ...